Nightingale Care Home

Updated 15 June 2023

The inspection

We carried out this inspection under Section 60 of the Health and Social Care Act 2008 (the Act) as part of our regulatory functions. We checked whether the provider was meeting the legal requirements and regulations associated with the Act. We looked at the overall quality of the service and provided a rating for the service under the Health and Social Care Act 2008.

Inspection team

This inspection was carried out by one inspector and one Expert by Experience. An Expert by Experience is a person who has personal experience of using or caring for someone who uses this type of care service.

Service and service type

Nightingale Care Home is a ‘care home’. People in care homes receive accommodation and nursing and/or personal care as a single package under one contractual agreement dependent on their registration with us. Nightingale Care Home is a care home without nursing care. CQC regulates both the premises and the care provided, and both were looked at during this inspection.

Registered Manager

This provider is required to have a registered manager to oversee the delivery of regulated activities at this location. A registered manager is a person who has registered with the Care Quality Commission to manage the service. Registered managers and providers are legally responsible for how the service is run, for the quality and safety of the care provided and compliance with regulations. At the time of our inspection there was a registered manager in post.

Notice of inspection

This inspection was unannounced and part of it was out of hours in order to review nightime care.

What we did before inspection

We reviewed information we had received about the service since the last inspection. We reviewed information shared by the local authority quality and safeguarding teams. We used all this information to plan our inspection.

During the inspection

We spoke with 7 people who used the service and 2 relatives. We reviewed written feedback from a further relative. We spoke with the registered manager, training manager, deputy manager, chef and 4 members of the care staff team. We spoke with the regional manager who is also the nominated individual for this service. The nominated individual is responsible for supervising the management of the service on behalf of the provider.

We reviewed 3 care plans in detail and sections from other plans alongside medication administration records for 4 people. We observed medicines, including controlled medicines, being administered, and checked medicine stock control, storage and disposal. We also reviewed records relating to the safety and quality of the service.

Updated 15 June 2023

About the service

Nightingale Care Home is a residential care home providing accommodation and personal care to up to 47 people. The service provides support to older people, the majority of whom are living with dementia. At the time of our inspection there were 41 people using the service. Nightingale Care Home is an adapted property on two floors with additional wings added.

People’s experience of using this service and what we found

People using the service and relatives gave us positive feedback about the care and support provided. One person who used the service told us, “I feel safe here and it is because of the people. You can get on with the staff, they are more like family. I feel safe with the carers, they put me at my ease and make you feel welcome.” A relative of a person living with advanced dementia praised the kindness and attention to detail of the staff saying, “[The staff] do sensory things like hand massage – they are very good like that. I have no issues. [My relative] is never in pain. Their training is excellent… I am very happy.”

People received safe care and treatment which met their needs. Some staff required further development and support to be confident in their skills and in their spoken English. The provider had plans in place to address this. There were enough staff to meet people’s needs and they were recruited safely. Staff understood about safeguarding people from harm and safeguarding concerns were referred to the local authority and investigated. Risks, including health related risks, were well managed, and records were accurate. The environment was suitable for the people who used the service. The safety of the environment and safety equipment and systems were monitored and satisfactorily maintained. Staff administered medicines safely.

People consented to their care and treatment and records relating to consent were good. People were supported to have maximum choice and control of their lives. Staff supported them in the least restrictive way possible and in their best interests; the policies and systems in the service supported this practice.

There were robust quality assurance systems in place to monitor the safety and quality of the service. The culture of the service was positive and inclusive, and the management team worked well together to drive the service forward.

For more details, please see the full report which is on the CQC website at www.cqc.org.uk

Rating at last inspection and update

The last rating for this service was requires improvement (published 29 April 2019) and there was a breach of regulation. The provider completed an action plan after the last inspection to show what they would do and by when to improve. At this inspection we found improvements had been made and the provider was no longer in breach of regulation.

Why we inspected

An external health professional had raised concerns in relation to staff members' spoken English and understanding of their role. As a result, we undertook a focused inspection to review the key questions of safe and well-led only. For those key questions not inspected, we used the ratings awarded at the last inspection to calculate the overall rating.

The overall rating for the service has changed from requires improvement to good based on the findings of this inspection. We found no evidence during this inspection that people were at risk of harm from this concern. However, the provider acknowledged some further development and language work was needed to be undertaken with some staff members. This was already underway before the conclusion of our inspection. Please see the safe and well-led sections of this full report.

You can read the report from our last comprehensive inspection, by selecting the ‘all reports’ link for Nightingale Care Home on our website at

www.cqc.org.uk.

Follow up

We will continue to monitor information we receive about the service, which will help inform when we next inspect.